Reviews of Picture Books, Easy Readers, Songs, and More!

Category Archives: Activity Books

Paper crafts have long been common in Japan and now they are becoming more popular in the U.S. as well, thanks to some amazing books that will entertain your children (or you), while promoting hand-eye coordination at the same time.

My children received this title for Christmas and it was a huge hit. The book contains 50 pre- perforated monsters, ready to pop-up, fold and glue. Also included are 10 blank templates, and I wish the kit had included more, because my 5-year-old son really enjoys creating monsters from scratch. Eventually the kids made so many monsters that we needed to bring my daughter’s doll house downstairs to house them all. I like how this set is boy-friendly, while still appealing to girls. The kids love how each monster has a detailed story that accompanies it. A true winner!

Kumon is famous for their academic classes and workbooks. But they also produce beautiful crafting books for younger children. My Book of Easy Crafts contains many folding and cutting projects that are both educational and fun. Most four-year-olds will need extra help, but the results are worth the trouble!

This book is considerably more challenging than the others mentioned above. Some of the projects are so sophisticated that adults would find it challenging and enjoyable. For instance, one craft is a toaster that actually pops out little paper toast! That said, my 8-year-old daughter adores this book. She carefully constructed each item and took enormous pride in her accomplishments.

Here are few more books that we have not yet tried, but plan on getting soon. Enjoy!

August is right around the corner and many of you will be headed to the beach, the mountains, or some other grand location. Children also enjoy vacations, but not the long waits that often accompany them. Plane flights and car rides are less than engaging for children, and the adults around them suffer their displeasure. Even at the destination, adults often need some downtime, without watching their kids bounce off the wall. Television and iPads help, but for parents wanting to limit screen time, there is another solution – activity books. The best activity books are portable, entertaining and if chosen properly, can be completed without constant adult assistance. I am only including books that are fun, after all kids need a vacation as well, allow for imagination and creativity, and do not require tons of craft supplies. All of these books have been vetted by my testers (7 and 5) and met with their approval.

Don’t Let the Pigeon Finish This Activity Book! by Mo Willems was given to my children as a joint present at Christmas last year. I gave it to both of them, because I figured parts of it would be too complicated for my then four-year-old son and they could divide it up. Instead, they did every single activity together and I had to hide it during much of the day, so that they wouldn’t complete the book too fast. Every morning during winter break, they woke up screaming “Pigeon time!” and I would hand over the book so they could complete their allotted pages.

Not that the pages stayed in the book – many of the pages tear out and become 1) a bus stop, 2) coin toss games, 3) a picture book, 4) a puppet show, and of course, 5) a bus. The airport, which was colored in by both kids, is featured above. I really can’t recommend this book enough. Be sure to bring along scissors and crayons. Ages 4+

We have owned Scribbles: A Really Giant Drawing and Coloring Book by Taro Gomi for years and my daughter is still not done with it. It is a huge book containing hundreds of pictures for kids to complete. I love how open-ended this book is – there is no one right way to complete any picture – while at the same time, it provides children with a general direction. Here is page that my daughter completed when she was younger:

On the top left, it reads, “This is a tiger.” Another page with the same image says, “This is a leopard,” and another one says, “This is a panther.” It is up to the kids to interpret what to do next. Ages 4+

Little girls love paper dolls, but who really wants a bunch of those floating around a suitcase? Usborne Activities has the solution: Sticker Dolly Dressing Dolls. There are a bunch of these for sale, but for trips I would personally recommend Sticker Dolly Dressing on Vacation. Each book contains a bunch of scenes and the child’s job is to dress the characters. The stories are sometimes a bit vapid, but who cares? It also doesn’t matter if the characters are dressed the way the book says they should be dressed, as long as the kids are occupied and enjoying themselves. Great for plane rides, if your child is not prone to motion sicknesses, and times when everyone needs to relax. Ages 4+

Four-year-olds might need a little help with the larger stickers. No extra supplies are needed. Ages 4+

The idea behind these little books is simple. Color, cut out and wear masks. String is provided. These are easy to pack, beautiful and encourage creative play. We own Superheroes Make-a-Mask and Butterflies Make-a-Mask. I have also brought these out during parties. Apparently even adults like coloring masks! Ages 3+

Fashion Design Portfolio includes line drawings of tween girls and stencils to help outfit them. These are a good choice for artistically-inclined girls. Below is a character my daughter designed:

Be sure to bring plenty of sharp colored pencils. Ages 7+

I have no artistic ability, but my kids luckily inherited my husband’s love of drawing. I try to bring at least one drawing book with me while we travel. During our next vacation, I will be bringing Ralph Masiello’s Ocean Drawing Book and Bug Drawing Book. The latter inspired this picture by my daughter:

Bring a sketch pad with you to avoid traveling with crumpled paper. Ages 5+

Math lovers will enjoy dot to dot books. Balloon Books has a very nice series that are good for varying levels. My son is currently working on Dot-to-Dot Count to 20.

The only supply this book requires is a pencil, but crayons are also a plus. Ages 4+

The Book of Cards for Kids is a tiny little book full of instructions for playing cards. It contained many of my childhood favorites, including “War,” “Spit,” and “Blackjack.” I would recommend buying a standard-sized deck, however. The one that comes with the set is strangely large. Ages 6+

This oversized book is perfect for rainy days at the beach. Since the pages detach (each one is its own mini comic strip), siblings can share the same book. For tighter luggage situations consider this related title also by Jason Ford:

Activity Book Recommendations

August is right around the corner and many of you will be headed to the beach, the mountains, or some other grand location. Children also enjoy vacations, but not the long waits that often accompany them. Plane flights and car rides are less than engaging for children, and the adults around them suffer their displeasure.

Poet Calef Brown, author and illustrator of such books as Flamingos on the Roof and We Go Together (which dropped January 15), transforms his paperback doodle book, Dragon, Robot, Gatorbunny: Pick one. Draw it. Make it funny., into an imaginative and interactive e-book (Chronicle, print book published April 2012; e-book November 2012).

Richard Scarry (1919-1994) published over 300 books with a total of 300 million copies sold worldwide. His fans are everywhere. Scarry was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He studied at the School of Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, where he remained until being drafted into the army during World War II.